Letter writers lend voice to community conversation

Tuesday

Jan 1, 2013 at 12:01 AM

At the end of each year The Dispatch publishes the names of everyone who wrote a letter to the editor during the previous year. It brings attention to the number of people who added their voice to the community dialogue about a multitude of topics.

At the end of each year The Dispatch publishes the names of everyone who wrote a letter to the editor during the previous year. It brings attention to the number of people who added their voice to the community dialogue about a multitude of topics.Appearing here today are the names in alphabetical order of everyone who submitted a letter to the editor in 2012. During the year, 513 letters were published, a number slightly below the 528 that appeared in 2011.Seventy-one people wrote more than one letter. Barney W. Hill, Jackie Taylor and Boyd W. Thomas had the maximum of one per month published; Hill has written monthly for seven years now. Marvin Callahan wrote 10.Six letters were signed by two people, two by three, one by five and one by six, so about 360 people took advantage of the opportunity to voice their opinion.The Dispatch publishes almost all the letters it receives. Besides only having one letter per month appear, letters must be limited to 500 words or less. Poetry, anonymous letters and business complaints are not used.Journalists take the words of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution very seriously. It says:"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."Newspapers play a key role in promoting that freedom of speech. By allowing readers to voice their opinions, newspapers distribute their voices further than they could on their own. Now, with the Internet, those opinions can reach around the world. Indeed, some of the letters that appeared in 2012 originated from far away but dealt with local topics.I want to thank everyone who submitted a letter to the editor during 2012. I hope that even more people will do so in 2013 and continue our community conversation.— Chad Killebrew, executive editor

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